Health News Roundup: American student trapped in coronavirus-hit city; WHO weighs science and politics and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

'I'm in an apocalypse:' American student trapped in coronavirus-hit Chinese city

For almost a week, 21-year-old American-born college student Nicholas Schneider has been trying and failing to find a way out of Wuhan, China, the quarantined city at the heart of a fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak. An eerie calm has descended on the normally bustling streets of the city of 11 million people, where Schneider has been studying geodesy - a branch of applied mathematics - at Wuhan University, about 10 miles (16 km) from where experts believe the new coronavirus originated in a market illegally trading in wildlife.

WHO weighs science and politics in global virus emergency decision

Most of the World Health Organization's (WHO) criteria for declaring a global emergency have been met, but it is awaiting clear evidence of a sustained spread of the new coronavirus outside China before doing so, some experts and diplomats said. The U.N. agency is seeking to balance the need to ensure China continues to share information about the virus while also giving sound scientific advice to the international community on the risks, according to several public health experts and a Western diplomat who tracks the WHO's work.

UNICEF sends six tonnes of masks and other gear to help fight China virus

A six-tonne shipment of respiratory masks and protective suits for health care workers landed in China on Wednesday for distribution in Wuhan, the epicenter of a spreading coronavirus outbreak, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) said. The United States and Japan flew citizens out of the central Chinese city as the death toll rose to 133 and the first case appeared in the Middle East. There have been 5,974 confirmed cases in China.

WHO to reconsider declaring global emergency as China virus evacuations begin

Foreign governments flew their citizens out of the epicenter of China's coronavirus outbreak on Wednesday, as the number of deaths jumped to 133 and the World Health Organization voiced "grave concern" about person-to-person spread in three other countries. The WHO said its Emergency Committee would reconvene behind closed doors on Thursday to decide whether the rapid spread of the new virus from China now constitutes a global emergency.

Spring Bank stops hepatitis drug development after patient dies during trial

Shares of Spring Bank Pharmaceuticals plummeted 26% on Wednesday after the company said it would end the development of an experimental drug to treat chronic hepatitis B virus, following the death of a patient in a mid-stage trial. Shares of Spring Bank fell to $1.60 in premarket trade. Earlier the stock was halted on the news.

Johnson & Johnson working on vaccine for deadly coronavirus

Johnson & Johnson on Wednesday became the latest drugmaker to begin work on developing a vaccine for a new coronavirus that has already killed more than 100 people in China, as health authorities race to contain the outbreak. J&J said its vaccine program would utilize the same technologies used to make its experimental Ebola vaccine, which is currently being administered in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda.

Where the Purdue Pharma-Sackler legal saga stands

OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP and its controlling Sackler family have been negotiating with cities, counties and states on a proposed settlement worth an estimated $10 billion to resolve more than 2,600 lawsuits alleging they helped fuel the U.S. opioid crisis. Those negotiations could be complicated by a Reuters report on Tuesday that Purdue is the unidentified company that was involved in an alleged kickback scheme aimed at improperly boosting prescriptions of opioid medications, though it was not charged with wrongdoing and has said it is cooperating with Justice Department investigations.

CVS to offer diabetes drugs at no out-of-pocket costs for PBM members

CVS Health Corp said on Wednesday its pharmacy benefit management (PBM) unit is launching a new program, under which employers and insurers will be able to offer diabetes drugs, including insulin, at no out-of-pocket costs to their members. The company said the program would not raise costs for health insurers and employers, and eliminating out-of-pocket costs would ensure better adherence by diabetic patients to their drug regimens.

U.S. reports no new deaths tied to vaping, lung illness cases rise to 2,711

U.S. health officials on Tuesday reported no new deaths from the mysterious respiratory illness tied to vaping after their last update on Jan. 16, keeping the total deaths at 60. As of Jan. 21, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 43 more cases from the illness associated with use of e-cigarettes or vaping products. The number of people hospitalized now stood at 2,711.

Keep calm and work at home: order prevails at virus-hit German firm

Four of their co-workers have contracted the coronavirus after a colleague from China visited the firm and their factory has been temporarily closed, but staff at German auto parts supplier Webasto insist they are not worried, even as the global death toll rises. Their calm is shared by locals in Stockdorf, a village of some 4,000 people just 10 km (6 miles) southwest of Munich, where Webasto's plant of 1,000 is based.